Improvement in breech-loading ordnance



n LBVANS.'

BRBEGH LDADING CANNON.

No. 30,305. Patented Oct. 9, 1-860'.

'4f views of detached portions,

NITE STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LEWIS EVANS, or MORGANTOWN, VIRGINIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN BREECH-LOADING ORDNANC'E.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 30,305, dated October 9, 1860.

State of Virginia, have invented-1a new anduseful Improvement in BreechLoading Cannous; andI` do hereby declare the following to be a full clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to drawings, makingv part of thisspecification,-v in Which- Figurel represents a longitudinal central vertical section, Fig. 2 a plan, and Figs. 3 and loading gun.

Similar' letters of reference 'represent like parts in each of the'several figures.

' The nature of my invention consists in rst locking thebreech-p'ieeein-thc breech-end of -f the barrel bymeaus of ahiuged lock-bar pass- 'ing through a slot in the breech-piece andcorresponding slots in the breech end of the barrel; second, operating the hammer by means of a hinged dog and crankshaft; third, adjusting the breech-piece in line with the barrel by means of toothed brackets moving in vertical ways; fourth, the combination of the breech-piece with a sliding standard, springcatch, pin, incline, and rack-gear, for the pur- Y pose of movin g the breech-piece into the breech end ofthe barrel when required.

Io enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describcits construction and operation.

The gun A is pivoted to a frame, B, supported by a shaft, C, and carriage-wheels D Din the usual manner. The breech end ofthe gun is open and enlarged, so as vto receive a separate breech-piece,y F, The bore ofthe breechpiece is lined with atube of thin metal. The

riIn of this tube A/projects beyond the e`11d of the breech-piece and fits into a corresponding recess in the bore of the gun. On firing the gun the rim of the tube A expands and fills the said rim tightly, so as to prevent all Windage. When the breech-piece is in the breech end of the gun, a slot in the breech-piece corresponds with two slots in the breech end of the gun. By inserting the -bar J through'said slot G the breech-piece is iirmly locked or wedged into the breech end ofthe gun. To move the bar J' up for the purpose of locking the breech-piece, as described, it is hinged the accompanying.V

of my breech-1 to the forward end o'f the lever H. `The lockbar J will be thrown up in the manner and for the purpose set forth. 'The lock-bar is hinged tothe lever in order that it can freely adapt itself to every motion of the gun on its pivots. Each breechpiece is provided with a number of short projections, Q', near its rear end, which take into correspondingnotches in the breech end of the barrel, and serve to adjust the breech-piece while being inserted, so that the slot in the breech-piece will be exactly in line with the slot G in the barrel, ready for the insertion of thc lock-bar.

A number of breech-pieces, F, are arranged iniradial lines around the center of a disk, y. A bolt, K', passes through a hole in the center of the disk y, and through holes in the rear end of the gun-carriage, and through a hole in the carriage supported on wheels N N', thus connecting together the gun-carriage 'and the carriage supporting the disk y. On turning the disk around its center-bolt, the breechpieces, which have previously been charged, are successively brought into line with the gun-barrel. Each breech-piece is held near its mouth between two bracket-s, L L, which slide in vertical ways projecting from the disk y. The brackets can be adjusted higher or lower, so as to raise or depress the mouth of the breech-piece, in order teibring itin line with 'the breech end of the gun, by raising or lowering the brackets in their ways and confining them in the desired `position by means` of the rack-teeth on the back of each bracket and a stationary pin, N, extending across each of the vertical ways or slots in the standards. The rear end of each breech-piece is provided with a short neck and knob, S. This neck is 1 hung into a forked standard, R, which iszfree to slide forward and backward in a radial slot, Z, in the disk y parallel with lthe axis of the breech-piece. These standards R are each provided with a projection, '1), near its rear edge. Vhen the breech-piece is at the inner end'. of slot Z, a spring-catchl pivoted to the disk y takes hold of projection P, so as to prevent the breech-piece from moving forward; but when the disky is turned so as to bring the breech-piece in line with the gunbarrel, a pin, Q, inserted through the stand -ard immediately below the catch and through l slot Z, is raised by coming in contact with the vis now free to be moved forward in the slot Z for the purpose of inserting the breech-piece into the breech end of the gun. The standard is moved forward and backward in theV slot Z in the following manner: The standard is made with a shank, which extends below and through the slot Z. As the disk is turned on its center-bolt so as to bring the breechpiece in line .with the gun-barrel, said shank enters a slot between two tongues, T U, projecting. from a rail, V. This rail rests in ways X in the carriage-frame supporting the disk y, and can be moved forward or backward by means of rack-teeth in the upper surface of said rail, and a cog-wheel, \V, gearing into the rack-teeth, moves the rail and, by means of the tongue T U, between which the standard-shank is held, the standard R and breechpiece forward or backward, so as to insert the breech-piece into or withdrawing it from the breech end of the gun barrel. After the charge has been fired and the breech-piece withdrawn, the disk Y is turned so as to bring the next breech-piece in line with the barrel. As the.breechpiece which has just been fired and withdrawn is removed, together with the disk Y, the pin Q slips off the inclined surface of tongue T and allows the catch O again to take hold of the projection l.

The hammer F slides through an inclined hole in the breech end of the barrel. \Vhen the breech-piece is inserted, its nipple J is in line with the hammer. Alittle projection, G, on the face of the hammer prevents the hammer from protruding too far below the inner end ofthe hammer-hole, and thusbeing in the way of the breech-piece when inserted. The upper end of the hammer is formed into a hook, H. In front of the hammer a small crank-shaft, B, is held in bearings projecting from the gun-barrel. A dog, E', made in two parts, hinged together at C', is attached at one Aend to the crankshaft B. n giving the crank-shaft part of a turn, so as to depress the edge of the dog and withdraw it from the hammer, and then turning the shaft back, the edge of the dog enters underneath the hook H. By continuing to turn the shaft in this direction the dog raises the hammer, and by the time the dog slips from underneath the projection H the hammer is thrown down by the action of the'spring I', which bears against the upper end of the hammer, and is thus made to strike the nipple J with sufficient force to explode the cap and discharge the gun.

Pointed bars or anchors E are hinged to the guncarriage shaft exten ding backward. Vhen the gun is being moved about, the rear ends of the anchors are hung into hooks O', secured to the gun-carriage; but when the gun is in position rea-dy for firing, the rear ends of the anchors are dropped onto the ground, so as t0 bear against the ground and prevent the recoil 'of the gun while being fired.

\Vhat I cla-im as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. Locking the breech-piece l*1 in the breech end of the barrel Aby means of ahnged lockbar, J, passing through a slotl in the breech-v piece and corresponding slot in the'breech end of the barrel, as and for the purposes herein' described.

2. Operating the hammer F by means of a hinged dog, E', and' crank-shaft B', as and for the purposes herein described.

3. Adjusting the breech-piece in line with the barrel by means of toothed brackets L, moving in vertical ways, as and for the purposes herein described.

4. The combination of the breech-piece F with a sliding stamhud, It, spring-catch O, pin Q, incline T, and rack-gear T V, for the purposes herein described.

LEWIS EVANS.

Witnesses:

R. W. Fnnwicx, G. F. G. Dil-:TERICH 

